Strategy

Mission

California Competes: Higher Education for a Strong Economy aims to solve the state’s thorny social and economic problems by conducting rigorous higher education and workforce policy research. Through our research, we guide decision makers in developing and implementing policies that bolster equity so every Californian can engage, contribute, and succeed.

Vision

We envision a California where our state and regional economies and communities thrive, fueled by equitable and racially just postsecondary and workforce outcomes.

People

California Competes benefits from the expertise of our highly respected, bipartisan Leadership Council, which comprises current and former public officials, business executives, and community leaders from across the state.

Our diverse staff brings decades of experience in higher education and public policy. We work statewide and travel across the country to research and advocate for a higher education system that provides opportunities for all Californians.

Strategy

California Competes executes its mission through four main strategies: research, governmental affairs, convenings, and collaboration with key partners.

Impact

Since our inception in 2010, we have been engaged in policy research and proponents of solutions to numerous critical issues in California higher education. We strive to increase the number of meaningful credentials awarded in the state and ensure more students of color and underrepresented students earn those degrees and certificates. Our impact includes:

• Enabling strategic decision-making by playing an instrumental role in the development of the California Cradle-to-Career Data System. From the publication of high-quality research and our participation in the Policy & Analytics Advisory Group to working closely with lawmakers, California Competes is at the center of this transformative work to bolster the use of data-driven strategies that aim to improve access for students who face systemic barriers to quality education and employment.
• Creating opportunities for adults by advising state leaders on issues surrounding Californians with no college degree, especially those who have amassed some college-level credits. We share our policy recommendations with leaders in Sacramento and statewide to make college a reality for these Californians, whether through traditional on-campus study or online learning. To increase the number of college credentials awarded to adults, California Competes counseled the California Community Colleges on its Credit for Prior Learning initiative to formally recognize life and work experience outside the classroom and help students get through college faster. Initiatives like credit for prior learning could increase access to education and economic mobility for Black and Latinx workers, especially those who have yet to earn a degree. Our analysis of Governor Gavin Newsom’s 2020-21 Proposed Budget highlighted new funding for workforce development and educating adults, emphasizing the growing momentum behind supporting this population for the benefit of all Californians.
• Dismantling silos that prevent students from moving efficiently through our higher education system. California Competes has long advocated for stronger coordination and was the first to identify California as one of only two states without comprehensive oversight and coordination of education. We recognize the Governor’s Council for Post-Secondary Education as a step in the right direction to discuss the systemic barriers students face.

Our Business Group Partners

As the world’s fifth largest economy, California depends on entrepreneurship, small business growth, and success across a range of industries. Our higher education system is a key linchpin in fueling the success and prosperity of those industries. Sustaining the state’s overall prosperity requires keeping pace with modern workforce needs and demands.

To this end, California Competes partners with business organizations across the state to help ensure employers have access to local talent and job seekers have the tools needed to land new opportunities.

Our business group partners include:

• Bay Area Council
• California Hispanic Chambers of Commerce
• Greater Sacramento Economic Council
• Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce
• Silicon Valley Leadership Group

Our Funders

California Competes: Higher Education for a Strong Economy is a project of Community Partners and receives support from: